Objectives
This section will help you to
- describe the problems of overconsumption and the costs on American society;
- relate the impact of American consumption on the world;
- recognize the environmental problems of overconsumption, including resource scarcity as related to carrying capacity;
- describe the causes of America’s consumption driven society;
- describe the Personal Costs of America’s overconsumption;
- relate overconsumption to environmental problems;
- define what a luxury is;
- describe the solutions for overconsumption and relate these solutions for overconsumption to your personal life;
- explain the concept of “enough;” and
- inter-relate overconsumption with pollution, global warming, resource usage, and waste management.
If you would like a guide to help you to achieve these learning objectives for this module, please click here for an “Objective Guide.”
"…Some observers see an America that blurs wants and needs, and
a sense of entitlement. They say we - both adults and kids - lose important
qualities by having it all. One of them is the ability to delay gratification
and tolerate frustration. Another is the ability to focus on not-for-sale
items such as community, family and spirituality. The ability to buy, some
say, gives us the power to purchase things that distract us from what would
truly satisfy us…"
-
The Affluenza Epidemic by Jan Uebelherr, Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel.